International Day against Homophobia in Football: why is it commemorated today?

Every February 19, since 1999, the International Day against Homophobia in Football is commemorated worldwide. The date was established 25 years ago in honor of Justin Fashanufirst footballer to publicly assume his homosexuality.

Fashanu was a British footballer. Born in London in 1961, he began his professional career in 1978, wearing the colors of Norwich City. In 1981, Nottingham Forest bought him for one million pounds, becoming the first dark-skinned player for whom a club paid that amount. But after a year at the club, and after confrontations with his coach, Brian Cloughwho questioned him several times due to rumors that he attended gay clubs, went out on loan to Southampton.

From there, he began to be continually transferred. Until the end of his career, in 1997, he had spells in clubs in England, the United States, Canada, Sweden, Scotland and New Zealand. In the middle, in 1990, he publicly declared his homosexuality, in an interview with the British newspaper “The Sun”. From there, according to what he would say in later interviews, although he was generally accepted by his colleagues, he began to be the target of jokes and criticism; Many even ruled that a gay player had no place in a team sport.

A tragic end

In March 1998, a 17-year-old boy accused him of sexually assaulting him in the United States. Several media outlets reported that there was an arrest warrant against the footballer, and although this was later denied (the US police never moved forward in the case due to lack of evidence), this fact contributed to worsening the depression that Fashanu was already suffering from, and on the 3rd of May, he was found hanged in an abandoned garage in London; he was 37 years old.

“I have realized that I have already been convicted as guilty. I don’t want to be an embarrassment to my friends and family anymore. […] I hope that the Jesus I love welcomes me and finally finds peace,” the Englishman wrote in his suicide note.

His legacy not only contributed to the establishment of this day of commemoration, but also encouraged many athletes to accept their sexuality. In 2017, the documentary “The Forgotten Games: the story of Justin Fashanu” was released, which allowed his story to be spread further, with the aim of raising awareness about homophobia in sports.